Light in the Dark
by twitwhatthings
Summary: Gajevy AU: Glimpses of Gajeel's childhood 400 years ago with Levy in the same time period as a small glow fairy.
1. Chapter 1: Fateful Encounter

Chapter 1: Fateful Encounter

The harsh sound of leaves being crushed became louder as a small child angrily stomped his way through the dim forest.

"Stupid Metalicana, shitty father", the small boy murmured in a mantra.

Lost in thought, the small boy had wandered too far from the Dragon's cave and found himself in a huge clearing. The boy raised his head to look at the clear night sky. He shivered as a cold breeze went through him.

 _"….I'm not lost. I'm just getting away from the old man, only idiots get lost",_ thought the child as he blankly looked around his surroundings. The quiet atmosphere calmed the child down as he plopped down on the boy thought back to the afternoon and groaned at the memory.

Today was the day Metalicana was finally going to teach him the Iron Dragon Roar. He witnessed the power of the roar firsthand when Metalicana had protected him from an enemy. He was so eager to make his old man proud. But despite training for the whole day, he could only produce a small puff of smoke. Metalicana roared with laughter as the boy ran away in frustration.

The small boy felt his eyes water and furiously wiped his eyes. _"Crying is for wimps. I'm the strong Iron Dragon-"_

"Um-"

The boy suddenly stiffened as a mysterious voice captured his attention. Even with his enhanced hearing, he couldn't pinpoint where the voice came from. It was as if the voice was being carried by the wind.

His ears perked up as the soft buzzing noise faded in and out of hearing range. Assuming it to be a pesky bug, the boy swatted his hands around to knock it out.

"OW"

He whipped his head towards the voice and squinted to get a better look at the small ball of light. The boy's eyes widened as he curiously watched a small blue haired fairy glaring back while rubbing her head.


	2. Chapter 2: First Light

The boy curiously stared at the small blue-haired fairy. The fairy's messy blue hair was tied back with an orange flower headband that matched her flowy dress. Delicate gold chains adorned her ankles and bare feet. His eyes widened at the sight of her delicate silver wings. He became mesmerized with the intricate designs on her wings. Meanwhile, the fairy's large brown eyes narrowed as she glared at the red-eyed brute who hit her. The gentle sound of her wings fluttering filled the night silence as his crimson eyes met brown.

 _"So small...,"_ the boy thought as he continued to take in the sight before him.

The fairy's cheeks puffed up as she pouted with her arms crossed. "Well, aren't you going to apologize?" the fairy said.

"Why would I do that, I didn't do anything wrong. Leave me alone shrimp." The boy tried to shoo the fairy away.

"Sh-shrimp?!" the fairy exclaimed in disbelief. "Don't make fun of me! I'm a fairy, not some-"

"Ain't shrimps orange? You're small and orange, so you're a shrimp."

Levy blankly stared at the boy. "Huh? Have you ever seen a shrimp before?" She huffed loudly.

The boy flinched and murmured something about stupid Metalicana teaching him the wrong thing. However, the fairy perked up at the dragon's name. "Oh! I haven't heard from Metalicana in a while. Last I heard, he adopted a kid named...um." The fairy furrowed her eyebrows in deep thought while she tapped her chin absentmindedly. "What was his name again? Gazille?"

"It's Gajeel," the boy deadpanned.

Levy clapped her hands together in excitement. "That's right! The boy's name was Gajeel. What a weird name, I've never heard of it before…," Levy trailed off as realization struck her. "Heh, I'm guessing you're Gajeel, right? Sorry about that, it's nice to meet you." The fairy gave Gajeel a sheepish smile. The small fairy flew closer towards Gajeel's face and extended her right hand.

The light from her wings illuminated her companion's face as her eyes roamed over the piercings on his face. Levy snorted and quickly covered her mouth to stifle a laugh when she saw three piercings in place of the Gajeel's eyebrows.

"What?" Gajeel raised an eyebrow at the giggling fairy, "what's so funny?" Gajeel asked loudly. He clenched his small hands into fists as he remembered Metalicana laughing at him earlier.

"N-nothing. It's just - well, your eyebrows are funny." The fairy grinned while laughing.

The fairy's comment irritated him and he abruptly stood up, startling the small girl. Gajeel turned on his heel to walk back home when he suddenly felt his hair being tugged from behind. This caught Gajeel by surprise and he fell flat on his back with a yelp. The fairy had panicked and grabbed onto the dragon slayer's short spiky hair and pulled with all her strength to stop the boy.

"Oi, what was that for?" Gajeel lifted his head up to look at the fairy sitting on his chest.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you." The fairy looked intently at Gajeel with slumped shoulders.

Gajeel felt shy as she continued to stare at him, "Tch, it's fine."

"No, it's not! I wasn't trying to make fun of you. I think your piercings match you really well." She tilted her head and gave him a bashful smile.

Gajeel quickly turned his face away, but not before the fairy saw the blush on his cheeks and his red ears. The fairy smiled as she realized the boy wasn't a hot-headed brute, but rather a shy awkward child. With a renewed look of determination, the fairy stood up and stuck her hand out. "It's a late introduction, but I'm Levy."

Gajeel looked at Levy's hand in amusement while Levy's eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the dragon slayer's expression.

"Gihihi, you sure you want to shake hands? You're barely the size of my hand. " Gajeel grinned, revealing his small canine teeth. Levy huffed in annoyance at the jab on her small stature. "Stupid Gajeel," she muttered as she smacked his chest.

"Don't worry about it, shorty. You'll grow eventually," Gajeel teased her as he sat up.

"Idiot, don't be cheeky." Levy got off his chest and headed towards the dimly lit forest.

"O-oi! Where are you going?" Gajeel jogged to catch up with her.

"I'm going to take you home. It's late," Levy said matter-of-factly.

"But why would you take me-"

"Because you're lost." Levy turned back and smirked at Gajeel's dumbfounded expression. "I've never seen you before in this clearing and you were just sitting there, so I guessed you were lost. Don't worry, I can make enough light for both of us".

However, Gajeel stubbornly refused to admit the fairy was right, so he stood in place with his arms crossed and turned his head the other way. Without Levy's light in his vicinity, the clearing had an ethereal yet eerie feeling to it from the pale moonlight shining above. Gajeel shrunk back from the unpleasant view. _"Tch got no choice then,"_ Gajeel thought as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Got no choice since you're too scared to stay here, gihi," Gajeel retorted as he kicked the ground and followed the light. Levy's wings shone brighter as the pair wandered into the forest path.

"Oi, how are you doing that? I didn't know fairies' wings could light up like that," Gajeel asked curiously as he brushed a small branch out of his way. While Gajeel was distracted in moving his obstacle, he missed how Levy briefly paused with downcast eyes.

"Well, there are always exceptions. I guess I'm a special case," Levy said in a forced lighthearted tone.

Gajeel sensed his companion's odd behavior. "Hah? What do you mean-" Levy quickly cut him off.

"Actually, we're a species of nature spirits." Gajeel raised an eyebrow at how his companion changed the subject but decided to leave it. Levy continued to speak after seeing Gajeel was silent. "Our species of fairies are born from nature itself under the right conditions," Levy rambled on as she navigated her way through the forest.

"What kind of conditions?" Gajeel asked genuinely interested in this new knowledge.

"The element has to reach maturation under the new moon," Levy answered while turning her head left to right.

"But, you can't even see the moon in that phase," Gajeel countered.

"True, but the new moon is the beginning of the moon cycle. Tada, the perfect time for a new life to be born!" Levy raised her arms dramatically as she looked at Gajeel expectantly, but Gajeel gave Levy a blank look.

"But, the new moon appears like once a month. This place is covered in a bunch of nature stuff. How are you guys so rare then?"

"Why the sudden interest?" Levy flew around his head as Gajeel rolled his eyes. "There's not many of us because our lifespan is the same as the element we come from," Levy continued.

"What?!" Gajeel grabbed Levy and shook her with a worried expression, "you're dying soon?". Levy struggled to escape from Gajeel's tiny grip.

"Stop, I'm getting dizzy," Levy said as Gajeel released her. She wobbled in the air for a bit before shaking her head. Levy flew upwards and sat on top of his head. "Stupid Gajeel, I'm not dying."

Relieved, Gajeel glanced up in an attempt to see her. "But, you said you have the same lifespan. Flowers, weeds, and stuff die fast!"

"They only die fast if you pick them off the ground," Levy complained as she left Gajeel's head. "Don't worry about me, I still have time."

"Good. I like talking to you." Gajeel stopped walking and jabbed his finger towards Levy who was flying in front of him. "But don't get me wrong. We're not friends or anything."

"Aww, that's too bad then. I was rather enjoying our new friendship. Oh well," Levy said in a bemused tone as she jokingly shrugged.

"Oi, I didn't say we can't be friends, I said we're not. Dammit, I mean," the small child struggled to get his words out.

 _"How cute,"_ Levy thought fondly as she smiled to herself.

Levy saved the small Gajeel from becoming a spluttering mess. "Here we are! The Iron Dragon's Lair!" Levy exclaimed dramatically as she extended an arm towards the destination.

Gajeel was so immersed in the conversation that he didn't realize how the dim forest eventually turned into a clear dirt path. Gajeel rubbed his eyes to adjust to the new lighting. The forest's dense trees had blocked off the moonlight, but Levy's light guided him home.

Gajeel looked at the jagged cliffside he called home and hesitated towards the cave. Gajeel rubbed the back of his head. "Oi, thanks for-". Before Gajeel could finish his sentence, Levy smacked Gajeel in the face with her small body.

"That's for hitting me earlier." Levy giggled as Gajeel touched his pink nose looking bewildered. "Bye Gajeel! See you tomorrow!" As Levy turned towards the dense forest.

"How? I don't know the way," Gajeel reminded the fairy.

Levy tapped her finger on her chin, "Hmm ... OH, I GOT IT!" Levy cried out ecstatically as her palm met her fist. She hummed as she went towards a tree while Gajeel curiously followed her. She looked back at Gajeel and placed her small hand at Gajeel's eye level. Levy closed her eyes while murmuring complex words and clapped her hands together, releasing a burst of magic that caused Gajeel to flinch from surprise and raised his hands to cover his eyes.

When Gajeel lowered his hands, he saw a deep swirl mark on the tree and Levy's beaming face. "There! I'll carve more marks for you, so you'll have something to follow," Levy proudly announced with both hands on her hips, admiring her handiwork.

The dragon slayers' chubby hand traced over the mark. A small smile graced his features from the warm feeling of having a new friend. Feeling embarrassed, Gajeel looked down to the ground before taking off towards the cave. Before Levy could yell in protest, Gajeel turned around and waved at her while running backward. Levy felt tears in her eyes as she continued to laugh at the dragon slayer who fell and tumbled down the dirt path.


End file.
